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SAN FRANCISCO AS IT WAS, NORTH FROM CALL BUILDING 

This panorama shows that portion of old San Francisco lying between Market Street, north toward Telegraph Hill. The tower of the Chronicle Building appears 
in the lower right corner, with the great Mills Building directly in the rear. Kearney Street stretches across the center of the scene. The upper left corner is 
Chinatown. Except for two small oases near Telegraph Hill, all the buildings included in this view were completely destroyed by tire. Nothing but fragments of 
blackened walls and gaunt and twisted steel frames remain standing above the ruins. 


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THE ADVANCE OF THE FLAMES Copyright, 1906, by Judge Co. 

This view is looking from the residence quarter toward the Merchants Exchange Building which appears in the center. The Mills Building shows at the extreme 
right. All the towering skyscrapers of this section suffered from the effects of the earthquake, and their wrecked fronts and broken windows afforded easy en¬ 
trance to the devastating flames as the fire worked westward from the water-front. The photo was taken on the second day (April 19) while the flames were 
advancing rapidly toward the camera. The houses in the foreground were soon enveloped and destroyed. 





















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A NEAR VIEW OF THE RUINED CITY HALL TOWER Copyright, 1906, by Hodson & Walsh. 

The massive tower of the City Hall was a conspicuous landmark, rising as it did to over 150 feet above the pavement. Nearly 
all its balconies and pillars of stone fell away in ruins from the effect of the shock, and the tlames swept through to the dome 
leaving only the skeleton-like steel framework. The statue, serenely holding aloft the torch of hope, which surmounts the 
ruined tower, is emblematic of the city’s courage under disaster. 























THE INDESTRUCTIBLE POST OFFICE Courtesy of “ Collier’s Weekly.” 

The U. S. Government edifices in San Francisco enjoyed a singular immunity from the worst effects of the earthquake and fire. The Mint escaped without serious 
damage from either source, and the massive Post Office, although its foundations have sunk and the flames did not spare it entirely, can be readily put in service¬ 
able condition again. Nowhere was the fire hotter than in the immediate vicinity of the Post Office. All the surrounding buildings were reduced to shapeless 
piles of brick, stone and steel debris. 

































































REMARKABLE EARTHQUAKE EFFECTS Copyright, 1906, by Hodson. 

In the vicinity of the Post Office Building are several extraordinary evidences of the terrible force of the passing earth-wave—the initial cause of the destruction 
which overwhelmed the city. The upper view shows a fissure into which the pavement has fallen, while in the background may be seen the cracked and distorted 
sections of the base stones of the Post Office. The lower view shows a bit of street railway and pavement which has been violently thrust upward several feet 
beyond the street level. It was this wavelike movement which destroyed the water mains. 
















































Courtesy of “ Collier’s "Weekly.” 

THE PALACE HOTEL 


Copyright,* 1906, by San Francisco Ruins Pub. Co. 
PALACE HOTEL IN FLAMES 


For many years this famous hotel was known as the finest hotel in the world. Its interior furnishings were regal in their magnificence. The edifice covered over 
two and one-half acres of ground, fronting on Market Street, San Francisco’s great business thoroughfare. It was destroyed by fire with almost incredible 
rapidity. Mesdames Eaines, Sembricli and Homer, Signor Caruso, and other grand opera stars of international renown, barely escaped with their lives. 


















OLYMPIC CLUB RUINS RUINS Y. M. C. A. BUILDING Coyyright, 190G, by Hodson. 

The Olympic Club building was the home of the swellest social institution in San Francisco. The local Y. M. C. A. was housed in a structure equal to any devoted 
to the Association purposes in America. Both edifices were totally destroyed by fire on the second day. The gallant and exhausted firemen had doggedly retreated 
beaten by the lack of sufficient water, and the military, in spite of a liberal and determined use of gunpowder, dynamite and artillery, could not stay the sweep of 
the flames east of the broad driveway of Van Ness Avenue. 
























Copyright, 100(1, by Hodson. 

DESOLATION IN UNION SQUARE (upper) FAIRMOUNT HOTEL (lower) 

The foreground of the upper view shows all that remains of two of the city’s imposing club structures—the Pacific Mutual 
and the Union League. It would be hard to find a more perfect scene of desolation and ruin. The new Fairmount Hotel on 
the crest of Nob Hill was gutted by the flames on the third day. It was erected by the Fair heirs and cost an enormous sura. 























TWO SCENES OF RUIN ON MARKET STREET Copyright, 1006, by Hodson 

Market Street was the broad main business artery of San Francisco and run athwart the city in a southwesterly direction 
from the Ferry Ruilding to the suburbs. It was lined on both sides with massive structures. The lower view shows the 
wreckage of the famous Poodle-Dog Restaurant at the left; in the center appears the gutted Flood Building, and to the right 
is all that remains of the Emporium, San Francisco’s immense department store. 













































HOMELESS CITIZENS ENCAMPING Copyright, 1906, by Judge Co. 

This view shows the smoke and flame of the fire steadily working its way toward the fine residence district on Nob Hill. In the foreground is a multitude of 
people driven from their homes who have hurriedly dumped the few articles saved on the nearest vacant lot and bravely started housekeeping in the open air. 

Many sick persons were carried to these places, but were afterward gathered up by ambulances and conveyed to temporary or permanent military hospitals. All 
the refugees were later supplied with tents, and made as comfortable as possible, under the circumstances. 












FIRE THREATENING REFUGEES’ CAMP Copyright, 1906, by Judge Co. 

A view of a camp on a vacant lot at the junction of Market and Valencia streets, looking toward Sixteenth, on the second day (April 19). The fire department 
and its volunteer assistants had abandoned the business section to its fate, but although almost dead from exhaustion continued to battle desperately to save the 
homes in the Mission district. The rapid approach of the flames threatened to envelop the camp of the refugees, and a retreat was about to be made. Fortunately 
the heroic firemen were able to hold the conflagration in check at this point. 




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BURNED BUSINESS BLOCKS AND THEATRES Copyright. 1906, by Hodson. 

The upper view shows the burned History Building on Market Street, near Kearney. The charred telegraph pule is evidence 
of the fierc e heat which enveloped the street at this point. The wall at the left in the lower view is the burned front of 
Fisher’s Theatre; to the right are the walls of the Alcazar Theatre—both were modem amusement palaces of the highest grade. 



































SAN FRANCISCO BURNIN 
A view taken from Nob Hill, looking toward Market Street, Thursday afternoo 
On the roofs are groups of people anxiously watching the spread of tl: 



















TER THE EARTHQUAKE Copyright, 1906, by Judge Co. 

ril 19,1906. The chimneys in the foreground show the effect of the earthquake. 
ies. The fire razed or gutted every building shown in this panorama. 





























RUINS NEAR MILLS BUILDING Copyright, 1906, by Hodson. 

This scene depicts well the effect of the fierce conflagration on the modern skyscraper of steel construction. The great Mills Building situated on Montgomery 
Street, a rear view of which is shown in the center of this picture, was gutted from top to bottom, but the walls and floor trusses and beams remained in place 
and the building may be refitted with a new interior. In the left distance is the Merchants Exchange Building which passed through a similar ordeal. 















Courtesy of “ Collier’s Weekly.” 

RUINS OF TEMPLE EMANUEL 


Copyright, 1096, by San Francisco Ruins Pub. Co. 
SIDEWALK REFUGEES 


The Jewish synagogue on Bush Street, known as the Temple Emanuel, ranked among the more imposing places of worship erected in America by men of the 
Hebrew faith. The view shows how thoroughly it was destroyed. The lower view was a typical one in the wake of the fire. Hundreds of well-to-do families were 
forced to take to the streets immediately with a few petty belongings—reduced in an hour or so from comfortable circumstances to the level of the poorest. 

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THE CALL BUILDING RUINED CALL BUILDING Copyright, 1906, by Hodson. 

The Call or Spreckles Building stands at the corner of Market and Third streets. It is sixteen stories high—the highest of San Francisco skyscrapers, and con¬ 
tained the offices of one of the leading newspapers of the city—The San Francisco Call. The steel framework of this building stood the strain of the shock, but it 
caught fire early and was gutted completely from basement to tower. It may be necessary to rebuild the structure entirely. In the right-hand view the fragment 
of wall in front of the Call Building is all that remains of the great plant of the San Francisco Examiner. 









































CHINATOWN AS IT WAS 

Tlie picturesque section of San Francisco where the large Chinese population herded covered the territory between Kearney and Dupont streets, south of Telegraph 
Hill. The shock wrecked hundreds of these flimsy buildings. On the 19th the flames raged through the narrow alleyways and reduced all to ashes. Probably the 
number of Chinese who perished will never be known. Old Chinatown, with its mysteries and strange oriental ways, is gone forever. It is proposed to confine the 
Chinese to an outlying section of the rebuilt city, and make them conform more to western ideas. 


_ 




















SUNKEN FLAT HOUSE AND EARTHQUAKE FISSURES 


This view, taken shortly after the shock, shows the effects of the earthquake in a residence district spared by the flames. Great yawning fissures have broken up 
the street surface in the foreground. The end of a snapped water main can be seen in the lower left corner. In front of the store the street railway tracks have 
risen above the surface level. The flat in the left background has sunken to the depth of one story below the street. An ambulance in the center is gathering the 
injured for transportation to the nearest hospital. Groups of excited citizens are discussing the situation. 

















VALENCIA HOTEL RUINED BY EARTHQUAKE 

The Valencia Hotel, located in the Mission district on Valencia Street, between Seventeenth and Eighteenth streets, collapsed as a result of the writhing of the 
earth during the heavy shock of Wednesday morning, April 18. The loss of life in this one building was appalling, due to the crushing of the lower story under the 
weight of the upper portion of the house. Forty persons were killed outright, and many others were taken from the wrecked building suffering from severe 
injuries. 























CLIFF HOUSE (upper) HAND STAND, GOLDEN GATE PARK (lower) 

The CliIV House, San Francisco’s famous resort hotel, was erroneously reported as destroyed. It was practically uninjured, 
and was transformed into a temporary home for sick and injured refugees. Golden Gate Park, a vast enclosure west of the 
city, became the camping ground of over 200,000 refugees. The costly Spreckles Band Stand was headquarters of the camp. 

















SPRECKLES MANSION AND RUINS OF FLOOD MANSION Courtesy of *• Collier’s Weekly. 

Tlie residence of Claus Spreckles, the sugar magnate, as depicted in the upper view, is a fair sample of the munificence dis¬ 
played by i he Pacific millionaires in the erection of splendid mansions. The lower view is from a photograph of the beautiful 
Flood mansion after the fire had wr» aked its fury. Works of art worth fabulous sums were lost in the destruction of these 
homes of rich San Franciscans. 


























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MARK HOPKINS ART INSTITUTE AND RUINS OF SAME Copyright, 1906 by Hodson. 

A beautiful memorial of its liberal founder, located on Nob Hill. It contained thousands of priceless works of art and wonder¬ 
ful curios—the result of years of effort and an almost unlimited expenditure of money. Strenuous means were adopted in the 
attempt to save this structure,,but in spite of dynamite and artillery, it was reached by flames and consumed. 


















































Courtesy of “ Collier’s Weekly.” Copyright, 1906, by San Francisco Ruins Pub. Co. 

RESIDENCE OF F. W. CROCKER AND RUINS OF SAME 

This set of views will give a fair idea of the complete ruin wrought by the advance of the dames through the fine residential 
district after the first day. The home of F. W. Crocker, a millionaire San Franciscan, was a veritable modern palace. It was 
a total loss, together with the magnificent private art gallery, a bit of which may be seen at the right of the upper view. 











































EFFECT OF EARTHQUAKE ON MEMORIAL CHAPEL, STANFORD UNIVERSITY Courtesy of “ Collier’s Weekly.” 

The result of the earthquake shock was particularly disastrous to the principal buildings of the Stanford University at Palo Alto, a few miles south of San Fran¬ 
cisco. The magnificent Memorial Chapel, one of the finest religious edifices in the world, the highest development of American art in many lines of special work, 
was terribly shaken and wrecked. The beautiful facade, the admiration of all travelers, was totally ruined, and the tower crashed through the roof causing irre¬ 
parable damage to the wonderful interior. 






















The upper view shows the wrecked interior of the Memorial Chapel. The damage to the sculptures, rich mosaics and wonderful mural paintings can hardly be 
stated in money terms. It will cost a fortune to restore the edifice to its former perfection. The glorious Memorial Arch at the entrance to the Quadrangle, de¬ 
signed by Richardson, was also rent and ruined by the shock. The ornamental frieze in bas relief was battered beyond repair by the fall of the heavy blocks of 
stone which crowned the arch Several statues were overthrown. One of Agassiz was thrust head first violently through a granolithic pavement. 






























THE PRESIDIO 

This great military reservation of the U S. Government is located on the extreme northwestern tip of the San Franciscan peninsula, directly opposite the famous 
Golden Gate. Here thousands of regulars are always stationed. These troops were ordered into the burning city on the 18tli, and earned the everlasting gratitude 
of the people by their faithful efforts to save life and property. The Presidio became a great camp of refugees, maintained by the War Department, and kept in 
splendid condition under strict military rule. 


















EARTHQUAKE RUINS IN OAKLAND 


The force of the twisting and grinding of the earth (luring the first shock was about as severe in Oakland, across the Bay from San Francisco, as in the larger 
metropolis. It was not followed by}anyJfierce]Conflagration, but the streets were littered with fallen walls, and five people were killed by the collapse of one 
building alone. The view here shown depicts the wreck of a store at the corner of Twelfth and Telegraph streets. For many hours the parks and squares were 
filled with people afraid to return to their shaken houses. It will take millions to repair the damage. 

















A VIEW OF FIRST STREET, SAN JOSE 


This whole business section of San Jose, a city of 60,000 people, located 40 miles south of San Francisco, was practically destroyed by the earthquake, with a loss 
of nineteen lives. The property loss is estimated from 88,000,000 to 810,000,000. Fire started here and the experience of the metropolis was in danger of being 
duplicated, but as the firemen had no difficulty in obtaining a sufficient supply of water, the flames were prevented from gaining a headway. The fine court house 
and high school edifices were shaken into ruins. 





























